 Click here for the Ride&Drive Index! Posted September, 2007 Road Test: 2007 Mazda MX-5
The Miata has always been a boy’s dream (for the boy in all of us, regardless of gender). It evokes the thrill of the small British racecar without the sticker shock of a Jaguar or a Bentley. Part of that sexy sports car image is inherent in the curves and lines of the Miata’s styling. This generation is subtle and restrained. The new wheel arches are reminiscent of the RX-8’s design and Mazda has employed slab-sided doors instead of the traditional bulbous ones. Small details like these, the windshield and others make this vehicle attractive looking whether the top is up or down. Under its skin this vehicle is quite an anomaly. It only has a 2.0L DOHC 16-valve in-line 4-cylinder engine. It produces 166hp at 6700 rpm for the manual transmission (an optional automatic creates 163hp at 6700 rpm but who in their right mind…?). Plus there is only 140 pounds per foot of torque at 5000 rpm. Not much to recommend it? You would be wrong. The engine pulls even when approaching the speed limit. That means quick starts aren’t as A complaint has always been the suspension, or lack thereof. With the 2006 Miata, Mazda really tightened it up. Its front/rear weight was distributed equally so the car performs smoothly. Even the aerodynamics of the windshield was taken into account in this balancing act. Suffice it to say that all of this thought and preparation was not in vain. It took the road like a champ. This attention being paid to aerodynamics also benefited the interior design. Because of the windshield and the mesh aero board between the seats, more of the sound we wanted—i.e., the kind generated by the sound system—stayed in the cabin while the road noise was relegated to the background. And the car had a Bose seven-speaker sound system that played our CDs as well as those tunes on our MP3 player. It has different settings for leather or cloth material but we couldn’t tell much of a difference. So much for that selling point. The MX-5 interior is wider than that of previous Miatas, offering much-needed improvements in hip and shoulder room. While the wider interior is good news for the driver, the passenger wasn’t as fortunate, relocated to an area with limited foot and knee space. And if you’re long-legged and you have been yearning for this car, learn to be slightly uncomfortable. At least your headroom won’t be compromised. The instrument panel was attractive, yet simple and easy-to-read. I like the steering wheel-mounted controls. Some of us didn’t. Regardless we were sure that the owner of the car would become accustomed to their placement or just ignore them altogether. The trunk has enough room for a couple bags of groceries even with the top down. Now the big news for 2007: the available retractable hardtop. Whether you choose it or the ragtop, it takes up the same amount of room. The hardtop can be powered down in twelve seconds. The softtop can be operated from inside the car with just one arm. But for those of you who want the security of city parking the hardtop is your best bet. The base MX-5 comes with a five-speed manual transmission, four-wheel anti-lock disc brakes (ABS), 16-inch alloy wheels, glass rear window with defroster, vinyl top, dual power mirrors, power windows, three-spoke tilt steering wheel, cloth bucket seats, mesh windblocker, AM/FM stereo with CD and side-impact airbags. The Touring and Sport models add more standard features such as larger wheels, cruise control and power door locks. The Grand Touring trim adds a cloth (rather than vinyl) top, tan or black leather seats and Bose audio. A new six-speed automatic with manual shift mode is optional on the Touring, Sport and Grand Touring trims. The Suspension Package offered on the Sport and Grand Touring adds Bilstein shocks, limited-slip differential and sport suspension. Dynamic Stability Control with Traction Control, the limited-slip differential, Smart Key and xenon headlamps can be had by ordering the Premium Package, which is available only on the Grand Touring trim level. The base MX-5 comes with a five-speed manual transmission, four-wheel anti-lock disc brakes (ABS), 16-inch alloy wheels, glass rear window with defroster, vinyl top, dual power mirrors, power windows, three-spoke tilt steering wheel, cloth bucket seats, mesh windblocker, AM/FM stereo with CD and side-impact airbags. The Touring and Sport models add more standard features such as larger wheels, cruise control and power door locks. The Grand Touring trim adds a cloth (rather than vinyl) top, tan or black leather seats and Bose audio. A new six-speed automatic with manual shift mode is optional on the Touring, Sport and Grand Touring trims. The Suspension Package offered on the Sport and Grand Touring adds Bilstein shocks, limited-slip differential and sport suspension. Dynamic Stability Control with Traction Control, the limited-slip differential, Smart Key and xenon headlamps can be had by ordering the Premium Package, which is available only on the Grand Touring trim level. The four trim levels comprising the MX-5 line-up range from a Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of $20,995 for the SV, to $25,060 for the Grand Touring model. The retractable hardtop is available on the Sport, Touring and Grand Touring and adds about $1,900 to the bottom line. More competitors in the field may make it easier to deal on the MX-5. We had the MX-5 Miata Grand Touring Hardtop with the six-speed manual transmission. The MSRP was $28,670 with all the trimmings. Only one I found was excessive. With this transmission I was constantly skipping gears because the shift points were so close together. I don’t know about you, but my life is stressful enough to have to work that hard at shifting! Go for the five-speed. Otherwise, the car was great fun and isn’t that what you want in a sports car? It is like a sinful desert that won’t wreck your diet—all of the indulgence without the penalty. All hail “Zoom. Zoom!” R&D
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2007, Mazda has packed it with more “Zoom Zoom” and sex appeal as it goes topless. Playboy Bunnies eat your heart out!
sluggish in the lower torque range as some other 4-cylinder vehicles in its class.